Chapter Five - We'd Like To Know A Little Bit About You For Our Files....
Doctor Maureen Robinson was a woman in ecstasy. For the replicators that Kathryn had instructed her in the judicious use of had produced the first new set of pantyhose she'd worn in five years. For the moment wearing short pants, she tried them on her bare legs, and couldn't believe how comfortable the fabric blend from 2266 was. Kathryn said that it had been the favorite of an Admiral she knew, once a lowly Communications Officer.
The door chime rang.
"Come in."
Standing at the door was Harry Kim, relaying a message. But the young man quickly noticed the pantyhose on the strong, former dancer's still-shapely legs.
"Mrs.---Mrs.---Robinson."
"Can I help you, Mister Kim?"
Harry was staring at her legs, and he made no bones about it--well, almost no bones. The pantyhose awoke something inside a young man who was almost as lonely as Maureen's two younger children.
"Ass--Ass--Ass--er, Astrometrics. The Captain wants you and your
husband to join her and---join with me---join me, as we try to figure out the mysteries of lov--of how you all got lost in your universe's Delta Quadrant."Maureen, confused, whipped off the pantyhose, and threw them across the room. Harry's vision followed them, and he gulped.
"All right, Harry. Tell Kathryn that John and I will be there with bells on."
Harry wheezed, suddenly seeing Maureen with bells--and nothing else--on.
"Be-Be-Be-Bells?"
Maureen, still confused, tried to change the subject.
"Harry, are you an Academy dropout, like Belanna Torres?"
"No-no-no-ho-ho-no, Maam! I'm a-a-a--"
"Graduate?"
"Yeah. That's it."
John then walked in. He saw the pantyhose. He smiled.
"I cannot wait to see you in those. Mister Kim--my wife's legs shine in those pantyhose. They could make a man melt."
Harry nodded, dumbly.
"Melt. Heh. Melt. Oh, By the way, Doctors-Commander Chakotay asked me if you needed any raw materials replicated in case you decide not to stay with us."
John held up a finger.
"Yes, Harry, we do. One thing: Plastics."
Harry left, hormones raging near out of control.
John stared out.
"Nice enough young man. A bit squirrelly, though."
Maureen seconded her husband.
"The way he acted, you'd think that I was trying to seduce him."
John returned to an earlier subject.
"Kathryn explained to me how I stepped on your toes by trying to summarily decide whether we stay aboard Voyager. She really is a remarkable woman. Kind of a Maureen O'Hara strong redhead."
Maureen O'Hara in her prime aside, Maureen Robinson found her husband's words just a trifle ominous.
In the corridor beyond, Tom Paris and Belanna Torres saw Harry Kim floating as though on a cloud.
"Hey, Starfleet! What's got you so up?"
"Harry--did you meet someone? C'mon, pal--who is she?"
Harry almost didn't hear himself speak.
"Mrs. Robinson."
As he walked off, Tom and Belanna, still roughly a year away from their decision to become a couple, took in this latest romantic misadventure of their young friend. Tom looked at the wall.
"Ladies first."
Belanna nodded.
"Thank You."
Belanna, and then Tom after her, began to bang their heads against the nearby wall. Chakotay wandered by, and stared.
"Who's Harry with, this time?"
Observing the exchange between Torres and Paris, Penny and Will Robinson chuckled.
"God, those two!"
Will agreed.
"Some people are just soooo obvious as a future couple. So, do you have your eye on someone?"
His sister nodded.
"Sure do. Harry Kim. And I think he likes me, too. During my breakfast with Mom, he couldn't stop staring over at me."
"Me, I'll have to wait. But at least we have people to wait for, around here."
As the 18-year old went off in mistaken pursuit, the 15-year old went back to his private cabin. He could enjoy life aboard this ship--free from parental eyes and ears, or at least freer than he was.
As Will entered his cabin, he heard the shower running. In the stall was a naked blonde woman. Will realized it was Kes, whom he had been told died in the twin explosions the previous day. His head swimming, he sat down on his bed.
"Thank God--for a minute there, I was afraid she was Judy!"
Kes came out, and made no move to cover herself.
"Will---I'm supposed to be dead. Neelix is trying to kill me. Can I stay here? I can put up a divider, for privacy."
Will fought back a lot of remarks.
"I think you'd better. I'm only 15--and my folks don't want me seeing--certain things."
Kes smiled, and stepped behind the computer-activated divider.
"That's okay. Occampans are not modesty-prone, by nature. Plus, I'm only 4
years old, myself."As her backside vanished behind the divider, Will nodded.
"Four, she says. My first willing naked lady, and I end up being a pervert by default! If there's a bigger fool than me, I wish them well. Cause they'll need it."
In the galley, Penny sat open-jawed and bug-eyed. Harry Kim had just destroyed her.
"What did you just say?!"
Harry stared ahead, and right through her.
"I just said that your mother is one pretty lady. So very pretty."
Penny walked out.
"Beaten out by my MOM! If there's a bigger fool than me, I wish them well, cause they'll need it."
She met her brother in the hallway.
"Hi, Will."
"Hi, Penny. How're you?"
"I've got an Oedipus Complex in the galley. Yourself?"
"I've got an immodest blonde 4-year old grown woman in my cabin. Wanna dance?"
"Sure. But this time, we breathe through the nose--it keeps the mouth closed."
"You said it!"
In Sickbay, The Doctor had good news for Judy Robinson.
"Your child is completely healthy. You should have an uncomplicated
delivery. But---are you friendly with your siblings?"Judy nodded at the odd, personal question.
"Of course. We're not as close as we all once were, but that's life. Especially since Don and I started together."
The EMH steepled his fingers.
"What if I told you that Will and Penny have perhaps become--closer to one another?"
Judy grew queasy.
"Define closer, Doctor."
The EMH gulped.
"Tongues."
Judy took this in for a minute.
"I need to throw up."
"More morning sickness?"
Judy ran for the refresher.
"No--not morning sickness."
Back in the galley, Tom Paris sat down to eat. The false news about Kes depressed him---although Neelix seemed to take it alright. The pasta--or Rotoulian, as Neelix called it, was light and wavy. He saw Don West walk up.
"Hey, Major! Try the pasta--its great."
Don dumped his tray all over Tom, and stood there, with arms folded. Paris looked up.
"Well, Don, if you don't like the pasta, you can always have pinto beans. I mean, geez."
The holodeck that Will and Penny sat in had been converted into a theater. They sat together, and enjoyed a movie from the Jupiter 2's files. Their older sister Judy came roaring in, glaring furiously at the two.
"Just what in the HELL do you two think you're doing?!"
Will looked up.
"Watching 'Its A Wonderful Life'."
Penny nodded.
"We needed cheering up. What's the matter, Judy? Don't like Frank Capra?"
Judy shook her head in utter disbelief.
"What's going to happen? What is going to happen?"
Will pointed at the screen.
"Well, the schoolteacher's husband just punched Jimmy Stewart, so he's about to have the car accident and think about jumping off the Bridge."
Penny shook her head.
"Judy, its not like you to get all worked up over a movie like this."
Judy held up her finger.
"What about all the kissing?"
Penny still missed her point.
"Granted, he and Donna Reed do kiss, but its all well within the bounds of..."
"I'm not talking about the movie! I'm talking about you two having your tongues inside each others' mouths!"
Penny frowned. Will shook his head in exasperation.
"Please state the nature of the holographic blabbermouth."
"Hold on, Will Robinson. Just because The Doctor betrayed your confidence and told a dark secret behind your back to someone he knew was likely to overreact, doesn't mean he did anything wrong....what am I saying?"
She sat down between them.
"I'm so sorry. But I worry about the two of you. You're smart, you're tough, you're capable. But when The EMH told me what you did....I was afraid. Can you forgive me?"
Penny nodded.
"Of course. We always have."
Will seconded.
"And we always will, no matter how stuck up and obnoxious you become."
The humor was meant gently, and Judy smiled a bit. For a moment, she was taken aback by it all. Not in her native universe. Pregnant by the man she loved, almost 10 years her senior. Drug and alcohol free--eight years and counting. A new home was being offered by real friends. And the babies she took into her heart as a little girl had just been through one of life's biggest moments--although in a very unorthodox fashion. Her parents--acting like raving lunatics, as far as she could see.
"I think I know why The Doctor told me. Mom and Dad----"
All sibs spoke as one.
"Nuff said."
Realizing that this was not to be quickly resolved, the three left the holodeck, but forgot to turn off the program. Belanna Torres immediately realized this as she entered.
"What kind of stupid fluff do they have playing here? Computer--restart video feature."
An hour later, Belanna was still staring at the screen. She wiped away tears, and blew her nose.
"But George worked so hard! Why doesn't he ever leave Bedford Falls? Its just not faiiiirrr!!"
And when she left in a state, Tuvok entered. Needless to say, he did not cry or emote. And yet.......
"She should not say that to him. A wife should always recognize her husband."
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Back in the galley, Tom Paris continued wiping off the pasta that Don West had
dumped on him."Good thing Neelix is serving white sauce."
West was almost snarling.
"That's right, Paris. Just joke away everything. Just like you joked away lives at Caldik Prime--then lied about it. You know, I happen to be a pilot myself. And among my kind, the lowest sort of person is the one who lies to make themselves look good. I got court-martialed, too. But I owned up to everything. Every last thing."
Tom nodded.
"So, to celebrate your honesty, naturally you dumped a food tray on me."
"You, Paris, are so lucky I don't just haul off and belt you one."
"You're right, Major. YOU are lucky."
As things reached a crisis point, Ken Dalby walked in.
"Don! Why didn't you let me finish my story?"
The Major pointed at Tom.
"Because, Ken, I'm here to finish off this lousy stinking liar, who...."
Dalby interrupted.
"....who turned himself in? Who probably would never have been caught if he hadn't done so?"
Don nodded, and looked around.
"Okay, so I'm an overreactive jerk! You wanna make something out of it?"
West sat down, and put his head on the table.
"Tom---please cut a fellow sky-jockey some slack. John has been riding me for weeks, now--and I finally gave out. Okay?"
Paris nodded.
"Okay. But only for that, West. From what I've seen, you've got a great lady, and that ship of yours is a pilot's dream."
Now, Don looked up.
"Are you nuts? All those dials, switches, diodes, swirling lights, endless panel displays...."
Tom seemed to be in heaven.
"Mmmmmm......switches and dials."
Don thought about the power behind each of Voyager's simple controls.
"Greener grass, I guess. Back home, I was stressed like this, I'd putter around in my garage til I calmed down."
Tom smiled.
"Holodeck Program Paris-81. Care for a second hand?"
Don lit up.
"I sure would!"
He saw Judy walk in.
"Hey, honey! Tom's got a garage holoprogram. Wanna join me?"
Her mind off both hypocritical parents and amorous siblings, Judy smiled and nodded yes.
"Are you kidding? A garage? Thanks, Tom."Tom sat there, having been suddenly invited out of his own suggestion.
"Computer--locate Lieutenant Torres."
He wasn't sure what was building between himself and Belanna, but talking to her rarely failed to cheer him up. Just not this time.
"Oh--Tom! He stood by his town! George Bailey knew more about REAL honor than my mother's whole family. I--I have to go and watch it again."
Tom now looked around.
"I-----think I'll get an early start on booting up The Jupiter 2's files. God, I wonder how many people on board have seen that dumb movie?"
In The Captain's quarters, Chakotay gave the answer to that.
"Do you want the moon, Kathryn? Cause I'll set up a tractor beam and pull it out of the sky for you!"
"Chakotay--you give me back my robe."
He did, reluctantly, as they went to meet The Doctors Robinson to figure out how their position in their native space shifted so radically. While there, The Doctor would also reveal startling secrets about two of the guests.
Meanwhile, Kes's best efforts to stay out of sight were ruined by Neelix's obsessive searching. Foolishly, she answered the door to the awkward cabin she and Will Robinson shared.
"So--you are alive. I knew it. Certain viruses are harder to eliminate than others."
"Neelix--I honestly don't understand why you hate me this much. But I thought we would still be friends."
The Talaxian shrugged.
"Neelix is your friend, Kes. But then, you didn't murder him, like you did me. I loved you--loved you so damned much. But you just stood there while Janeway had my life--my very existence-- snuffed out! Should I forgive that? Should I forget that?"
Kes felt her blood run cold. She said a name she never expected to hear again.
"Tuvix?"
---------------------------------------------
Harry Kim was attempting to explain his findings on The Jupiter 2's trans-quadrant displacement.
This might have been easier to do, were he not fighting off the enormous crush he had developed on Doctor Maureen Robinson.
"Tracing the route map you gave us, I've tried to discern if any of the...curves...of the many....legs...of your journey would place you in your....region's....answer to the...Delta....quadrant."
Kathryn Janeway nodded at her young ensign, while whispering well under her breath.
"Harry, I am going to kill you slowly."
"Now, here is my...view...from...top..to... bottom. You, Doctor, told me that your ..wife...was asleep when that turbulence hit you, three months back."
John nodded, uncomprehending of the would-be predator eyeing his wife. This could have been because he was giving the eye to Captain Janeway.
"That's right, Harry. My Maureen, she sleeps like an angel, no matter what."
Harry was lost for a minute in images he would not have put on the holodeck--ever.
"Um..yeah. Oh yeah. Now, you briefly lost consciousness during the turbulence yourself, correct?"
Maureen jumped in.
"All of us except for Will and Penny. When one of them would begin to faint, the other would wake them back up. Good thing those two are always on top of each other, lately. Although for a while, Penny acted like her brother was beneath her."
Janeway and Chakotay bit down hard, upon hearing Maureen's choice of words regarding her younger children. Then John followed up, and they nearly cracked their teeth.
"That was just part of their little dance, honey. Before too long, they had kissed and made up--and their arguing is now confined to dividing the household duties, Penny's use of the hot water, and Will's leaving the toilet seat up on the communal bath area. Otherwise, they get along just fine. They know each other's rhythms--as well as you and I know each other's!"
Being a good first officer, Chakotay had coffee at the ready, which Kathryn quickly gulped.
"Harry--please tell us what you learned from
Penny and Will about this circumstance."Kim nodded.
"Well, I really only spoke to Will, Captain. Penny seemed--kind of misty towards me. I couldn't figure it out."
As one, the four older adults had one thought about Harry Kim.
"You wouldn't."
Harry continued.
"Now, Will spotted a silvery ship dart out through what he called a 'burp' of energy. While he and Penny tried to revive everyone else, the other ship continued its journey, sent a message, then broke back through to its own native space."
John shrugged.
"Except for our being unable to decipher the message, that was that for the whole incident. Thank Heavens Will and Penny had each other to hold onto, when we all collapsed. I almost think that, left on their own, those two could make it."
Maureen continued the eerie drumbeat.
"Oh, my--Yes. They already make out rather well as it is."
Chakotay was now drinking as much coffee as Kathryn. And he didn't even like coffee. He tried to change the entire conversation.
"Did Doctor Smith lose consciousness during the turbulence?"
John shook his head.
"Its always hard to tell with Smith. For all we know, the turbulence might have awakened him. God Above knows nothing else can."
Harry pointed at his Captain.
"Maam--Tuvok and Belanna say that they deciphered much of the compressed data stream from that message."
Janeway put in the disk.
"Yes, they did. But why aren't they here?"
Chakotay pulled out a schedule.
"Its the MidNoon Showing. The Colorized Version. Violet's dress is purple, and Mr. Potter's coach is done up in gold trim."
Janeway frowned.
"They should never have made a colorized version. Now, the message."
The face of a bearded human male came on the screen. He spoke mid-21st Century English.
"To you who were caught in our wake, we apologize. But you have to understand. Nothing about our journey has gone as planned. We have been forced to use numerous gravimetric wells to propel ourselves forward. Be warned. These jumps of ours leave unstable, invisible portals in our wake. Suggest you do not move forward until scanning for them. Again, forgive us, and Godspeed...."The next words almost made the Robinsons choke.
"...Doctor John Robinson, commanding The Earthship Jupiter 2, over and out."
John looked at his wife.
"Mirror, Mirror, anyone?"
A stunned Maureen nodded.
"Complete with bearded alternates!"
Chakotay and Janeway had not the slightest idea what they were talking about. But another Voyager crew member soon would.
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Kes faced several dilemmas, of late. The end of her affair with Neelix. The emergence of her psionic abilities, under Tuvok's tutelage. The growing knowledge that the ideas she had of maybe taking up with Tom Paris were rendered moot by the presence of her half-Klingon friend.
As always, she faced the uniquely Occampan problem of living so short a time among races that lived in multiples of nine years.But this one had to take the cake. The seemingly insane Neelix who had been stalking her all over the ship was not Neelix at all--sort of.
"Tuvix? How can you be inside of Neelix? You are Neelix--and Tuvok, combined."
Tuvix tilted his borrowed-back head.
"Kes, be logical. A transporter accident can't create a soul--and it can't uncreate it, either. But a life can be ended that way. Have you ever heard of a Starfleet Admiral named Lori Ciana and a Vulcan named Sonak? They died aboard the first Enterprise, almost 100 years ago today. A transporter accident merged them. The bodies were separated--and then came back to agony-filled life. They were phasered out of existence, and were probably thankful for it. Kes--I felt every last nanoSECOND of my death. And so shall you. I'll merge you with Janeway. Tell me, murderer, would you prefer Kathes, or Kesaryn?"
But as he moved to grab Kes, Tuvix felt a blow to the back. Kes's makeshift roommate, a young hero, had moved in to stop the attacker.
"Get away from her. You get away from her, right now!"
It could have been his innate sense of chivalry. It could have been the fact that he didn't like bullies. It could have been the fact that he was 15 years old, and had seen Kes without a stitch of clothing on her body. But Will Robinson moved to a fighting stance, and was deadly serious.
"You heard me. Now get away from her."
Tuvix grinned a predator's grin.
"Little man, there are two types of people..."
Will finished for him.
"I know! Sheep and Wolves. Do you crazy people practice that speech or something?"
Tuvix grabbed Will by the throat.
"Or something. For the record, I'm not crazy. But I am going to send you to The Fire Caves."
Batted back by Tuvix, Kes nonetheless tried and failed to recall any Talaxian or Vulcan talk of 'Fire Caves'. She could recall none.
"Now, my little visitor from another universe, you.....what did you hit me with?"
Will pushed him down, and smiled.
"A hypospray the Doctor gave me to help me sleep. Only I gave you a lot more than one dose."
Tuvix began to fade from Neelix's eyes. He glared at Kes.
"This--isn't--over, WITCH!"
Kes kicked him in the forehead, no matter whose body it was.
"Oh, I rather think it is."
As he fell unconscious, Kes called security. She also turned to her rescuer.
"Will--I would like to thank you."
"No. I was just doing what you're supposed to do, when someone's in trouble."
To his surprise, she pushed his head back.
"No. I want to thank you. Being Occampan, we don't view age differences the same way other bipedals might. You intrigue me, Will. I could do without you. But I don't want to have to."
Kes was no wanton, or other words to that effect. But a short life plus a true limit of pregnancy possibilities meant that Occampans really did see sex differently. Perhaps because of Will's own untapped psionics as well, Kes indeed found him intriguing. So she took him and kissed him, rather deeply. Then the door opened. It was Will's older sister, Penny. She just as quickly withdrew.
"Okay. Will is getting kissed. My Brother. By a beautiful woman. I should be happy for him. I--am happy for him. Why wouldn't I be happy for him? Its not like I'm at all jea--unhappy for him. Its not like I want to drive a stake into him and that miserable 4-year old hussy."
Insult added to injury, when Harry Kim rounded the corner.
"Penny--have you seen your mother? I just wanted to ask her...."
Penny seized the day--and Harry Kim.
"You--are a real jerk."
She then kissed him, long and deep, and then pulled back and stared at Harry. He nodded.
"Oh, boy. I've been doing it again, haven't I?"
The entire deck responded as one.
"Yes, Harry. Again."
Harry then asked a non-holo, friendly, humanoid woman close to his own age a question.
"How about some racquetball?"
It was a start, and Penny took it for all she could.
Inside Will's quarters, Neelix was taken away for treatment, while Kes returned to her restored quarters. Tuvok asked a question.
"Kes, is Will Robinson in good health? He seems--distracted."
"Tuvok, you needn't worry. If there's anything wrong with him, I'll find out later, when we get together."
Will lay on his bed, staring at the ceiling. He smiled.
"I can't feel my body."
He imagined Kes again, but a detail was off. A very important detail. He opened his eyes.
"Note to imagination. Kes---is not a brunette. Though she would look good as one. God, Please tell me I didn't just say that."
---------------------------------------------
Almost alone, and to his mind, thankfully away from the walking distraction Belanna Torres had become of late, Tom Paris sat in the wonderland of dials that was The Jupiter 2. He was not without any company, though.
"How goes your progress, Tom Paris?"
Tom smiled every time he looked at The Robot. He was just a dream come true.
"It goes, pal. It goes. Tell me, do things get tight around here? I mean, I love this place, but spacey it isn't."
"Things quite often get 'tight' as you put it. The Doctors Robinson feel it. They are not as--active a couple--as they would like to be, if their children could not hear them. Major West and Doctor Judy
Robinson----"Tom raised a finger.
"Doctor Judy?"
"Affirmative. Since she was 15."
Tom winced. The Captain had made the right call. With just a little training, The Robinsons would be fantastic additions to the crew. They might even make the difference in getting home.
"Yeah, I picked her as the smartest of the bunch, straight off. She's got the presence."
"You are incorrect. Will Robinson's various intelligence quotients place him at first, but Penny's skills are far more practically oriented. No member of this crew, planned or accidental, has less than a 155 IQ."Tom asked the obvious.
"Even Smith?"
"Do yourself a favor, Tom Paris. When in the proximity of Doctor Zachary Smith, neither underestimate nor turn your back on him. He is not the clown he seems."
Tom had almost figured that out on his own. But Robot had spelled it out in very blatant terms.
"Gotcha. But...are Will and Penny alright? I mean, its gotta be rough on two kids. They must argue a lot."
"Again, you are wrong. Such arguments ended soon after our visit to the Amazonian Female Supremacists. Though there was a brief flaring, they no longer even exchange glares. Merely looks of contentment and happiness that the other is present."
At those words, Tom fell silent. Robot became concerned.
"Tom Paris...you seem unwell. Should I summon my friend, your helpful EMH?"
"No, Robot. This is not something I can talk to anyone about. Captain Janeway knows, because my father told her. Maybe Chakotay does, and I don't mind, because he can be trusted."
Robot struck upon an idea.
"You may tell me. Then I will delete the appropriate memory banks."
Tom nodded.
"You'd do that for me?"
"I would. You and your crew have proven worthy of trust. Plus, my banks contain numerous deleted files. I am a sort of cybernetic bartender, I suppose."
Tom wondered, as close as he and Belanna were becoming, whether he would ever tell her this--thing.
"There was a girl I knew, back home. I always thought she was a knockout. But she had social problems. Felt awkward. Couldn't find a date. So she asked me out. I felt weird, but I went, and I had fun."
"Did you care for this girl, Tom Paris?"
Tom was the soul of brevity on that one question.
"I loved her. Always did. Always will. But she---presumed on that love. Presumed on it in ways I wouldn't have thought she could or would."
"She was your elder?"
"By two years. The time came when she said she wanted to do more than just hang out together. She said she wanted her first time to be---with me."
"And what did you do?"
Tom closed his eyes.
"I could never tell her no. So our first time was with each other. It was beautiful. Then---she started talking like we would be together always--and that just wasn't possible."
"She took the news poorly?"
"She did. So I told my father. It was the first time he ever slapped me. But he believed me, then he hugged me, and told me some old history. It helped clear things up, a little."
"What of the girl?"
Tom looked down.
"Taken away, so she could get some help. But she hasn't spoken to me since. Called me a traitor."
"What had she done, that she required mental therapy?"
Tom's eyes took on an edge they had not seen since he first lied about Caldik Prime.
"I guess I forgot to mention her name. It was Sadie Paris. Paris by birth. You see, I didn't just speak to my father. I spoke to our father. That is why I am going to do everything I can to help Will and Penny. They won't be able to look at each other the same way if they end up....what's this?"
Even the secret horror from Tom's past was ignored by him, at this point. For what he saw on the transfer-file display just blew his mind. It was terrifically hard to cope with--almost metaphysical. That meant he knew who to call.
"Paris to Chakotay. I kind of need your help, here. I'm downloading the J2's popular culture file--and this is unreal. Can you get here, fast?"
"On my way, Tom. Chakotay out."
Paris looked over at his metallic friend.
"Thanks for listening to all that, pal."
Robot seemed to shrug.
"Listening to all what, Tom Paris?"
Robot then departed, leaving Tom unsure of whether this was a case of deleted files--or a friend who knew how to keep a secret.
"Alright, Mister Paris--just what was so urgent?"
Tom hit the play switch.
"Chakotay--listen to this."
A man's voice spoke familiar words.
"Space--The Final Frontier. These Are The Voyages Of The Starship Enterprise..."
"I recognize that voice from historical holos. That's James Kirk."
Tom shook his head.
"Nope. According to this, those words were spoken by a man name of Shatner. And there's more."
Chakotay nodded.
"Yeah, I'll bet there's more."
Despite the intensely odd nature of Tom's discovery, the XO stopped the replay.
"Tom, Kathryn told me about your family history. Its not her fault. I insisted on knowing why she didn't discipline you about allowing Penny and Will in the holodecks."
Paris shrugged.
"I trust you, Chakotay. You kept some of the more revenge-minded Maquis off me, back when I know your opinion of me was no higher. Besides, you're reluctant to talk much about your own family. I somehow don't see you chit-chatting about mine."
Sensing no insult in Tom's words, Chakotay pressed on.
"Has it affected you? I mean, to have a family member force themselves on you is perhaps the ultimate betrayal."
Paris looked about for any ears to the wall, and then spoke.
"Sadie didn't force herself on me. Despite the slight age difference, I was bigger and stronger than her, and she wasn't a crazy fighter. Did she manipulate me? Yeah. When you're a terminally awkward teenager, and a gorgeous girl tells you she thinks you're gorgeous, you respond."
Chakotay said it outright.
"But your own sister? Tom, it must have thrown you off badly."
"You mean....did I become a womanizer as a result? Did I become an angry rebel, as a result? Did I start considering myself to be such a big loser, that I had to be halfway across the
galaxy before I could start over?"Tom shrugged.
"Nope. Nope. Nope. aaaannnddd....nope. Everything everybody knows about
Tom Paris was true before my first-and-only with Sadie---Paris. Mayybe the rampant womanizing got more intense--and I did feel a need to not just flirt anymore. But what happened wasn't the problem. That it happened was--off-putting--to be certain. But I was with someone I love. Someone beautiful. I could have stayed with her for the rest of my life, and accepted every last bit of scorn.""Then why did you turn her in?"
"Because. I could have stayed with her the rest of my life, and thought nothing of it. I'm an explorer, Chakotay. I want to pilot my ship through all the crazy places. The real betrayal would have been keeping to the nest, like she wanted. Its not how humans do things. We go out. We don't pull in. It was hard, after they took her to Tantalus. I ached for someone with whom the extent of my deep physical interaction was supposed to be wild tickling and punches in the arm. Funny thing is, my father was never more understanding and patient with me than at that time."
Chakotay remembered the records.
"Yes. Because history was repeating itself. Almost."
Tom went for the whole ugly story.
"My Dad had a sister, my Aunt Nicollette. They were very close, always."
"Was she older or younger?"
"Twin. In fact, her husband, my Uncle Jack Locarno, was my Mom's twin brother. That's why my may-he-burn-in- hell cousin Nick and I look so much alike."
Chakotay strained a bit, but then made the connection.
"Oh, yeah. He was the one who was the ringleader on that Kolvoord Starburst Flight stunt, at The Academy. The one that Picard exposed, when a cadet was killed."
Tom raised a finger.
"The one that Picard's protege exposed. I wrote the guy a letter, congratulating him. With Nick, it was so easy just to throw in and do what he says. Wesley Crusher may or may not be the huge geek everyone says, but he learned what I took years to. That Nick Locarno is a snake."
"Tom...he did allow himself to be expelled from The Academy, taking full responsibility for his Squadron."
Paris wasn't buying.
"He also re-applied when the absolute ban was lifted, and was promptly reinstated with almost all of his credits. His squad didn't fare so well. I don't know about Crusher, but along with Albert, the other two are dead. One was a suicide. Right before we left. But Nick's history. I got him good, not long before Captain Janeway showed up."
Tom raised his hand.
"Anyway, my Aunt Nickie never liked my mother. Considered her an impediment to her relationships with both her husband and my father. Suffice it to say--she was nuts. Jack left her, and Nick, though he was already a spoiled brat. So then she got ideas about my father. Not physical ones--but functional ones."
"Functional?"
"Yeah. See, her notion was that they function as a couple in every way but the most intimate. They would have people, but never stay with them. Stop me if I begin to make you nauseous."
Chakotay indeed chose to sit down.
"Your parents' marriage was troubled, I take it?"
Tom smiled.
"Heh. No! Its always been great. Those two? They're a marriage counselor's wet dream. Which is the major, though not the only reason, Dad turned Nickie down flat."
"Which she didn't take very well."
"To say the least. Chakotay, she was Starfleet, too. Captain of a Soyuz-Class. She had so much. Well, once during a visit from my parents, she disconnects an unused dilithium crystal and plants it on my mother. Of course, no Paris can lie successfully. So the last time my father saw her---it was in Auckland. She spit in his face. Later that month, we got word an inmate had stabbed her. Nick either wouldn't or couldn't respond. He found about 13 girls he knew and was skinny-dipping within sight of the funeral procession. So, once again, the worst enemy our family has---is ourselves."
Chakotay could easily tell worse tales, handed down from European colonial times in The New World. But somehow, these things always sounded sleazier when spoken of one small family, rather than a tribe or outpost.
"Tom---tell me all about 'Star Trek'."
---------------------------------------------------------------
Tuvok sought to interrogate the supposedly-possessed Neelix. As one might expect, neither jailer nor jailed were in a very patient mood.
"Your claims are, you understand, extremely suspect. I cannot believe that you are the being formerly known as Tuvix. Since together, Neelix and I made up Tuvix."
Behind the sick-bay force-field, Neelix grinned.
"Hey, I guess there's a little Tuvix in all of us."
"Such nonsequiturs might be answers, coming from Mister Neelix. From you, they are merely non sequiturs. Since I am told that Tuvix had a rather dry wit, this furthers my theory that I am in fact not speaking to his katra."
"In't it funny how being killed just kills your sense of humor?"
Tuvok moved to end this in a logical manner.
"Tell me something about myself that only one such as you claim to be would know."
'Tuvix' tapped his fingers.
"What to say, what to say? Ohhh--I know. How about that girl you were obsessed with, as a youngster? The one who got you banished to a monastery for a time? Boy, were your parents ever worried! Not good enough? How's about the report Sulu made you tear up, chastising him about pursuing the murderers of Doctor McCoy's wife? Now THAT burned your desert-born hide---oops---lunar-born hide."
Tuvok tried hard not to look stunned. Neelix's grin faded.
"I was once a part of you, Mister Vulcan. Body and Soul. I know absolutely everything you know. Including about Kes's future past--or is that past imperfect? You should kill that little cow now, before she has the chance to..."
Captain Janeway, who had been listening in, now spoke up.
"Computer, deactivate EMH and lockout reactivation until I say so!"
Before The Doctor had a chance to react, he faded out. Janeway then altered his program to erase any references to Kes's future--just as she had done before. Neelix/Tuvix tsked.
"Oh, Captain. Next thing you know you'll have to delete him entirely. That'd be like--murder. But you're good with that, aren't you?"
Janeway was not impressed.
"I've killed to protect my crew. I imagine I'll kill again. But I am no murderer. You, on the other hand, have harried, stalked, and tried to murder poor Kes, who was the most torn about the separation procedure."
"So she sold her soul cheaply. That's not my problem. You all are. You're alive, and I hope to change that fact--soon."
Tuvok noted that this being had very different mannerisms, and was a great deal less furtive than Neelix. The suggestion of an excitable nature combined with one that was decidedly less so. Seeming proof of the being's otherwise suspect claim. The Vulcan tried to regain his ground.
"Tuvix---Will Robinson says, that when he attempted to stop you from murdering Kes, you spoke of sending him to 'The Fire Caves'. That is a Bajoran reference. Why did you use it?"
'Tuvix' shrugged.
"I've spent years studying the Bajoran religion--or you have."
Tuvok would never smile, but his demeanor now became greatly relaxed. Whoever this was, he had him.
"That is a blatant lie. I had to look up the reference, and my memory is excellent. While I respect the faith of my fellow crewmembers from Bajor, I have never had any real interest in knowing of it. I did not know, for example, of the Prophets' enemies, The Pagh Wraiths, til I did my search. Odd, since the ancient Bajoran traders seeded that cult as far away as..."
Tuvix, or whoever he was, exploded.
"ENOUGH!!! I am who I say I am. I lived on Voyager, and I died on Voyager, as you murdered me. You left me behind, Tuvok. You left me to rot. But I came back. I...we....were part of you. Part of this crew. But because of what I was, you felt the need to destroy me. Did you expect me to forgive and forget? You want any more information, you come and you get it the hard way."
Tuvok would not sigh, either. But his mouth opened as if to. He had thought it would come to this. It always seemed to.
"Captain--our precautions?"
Kathryn nodded.
"Computer--activate emergency holographic security staff."
Ten well-armed guards appeared around the Sick-Bay. She pointed about.
"Whoever you are, understand this. This place is chock-full of holo-emitters. You couldn't disrupt them all in time. My advice is that you don't try."
The phony grin came back.
"Hey, Katie---always happy to oblige."
The field came down, and Tuvok and two of the faux-guards entered. As Neelix stood still,
Tuvok began the process."Our minds are one....."
The meld was a quiet one. To Kathryn's surprise and relief, the posessed Neelix did not attempt to escape. Tuvok spoke softly, while it went on.
"I am indeed encountering my own thoughts, from another perspective. How odd."
Neelix/Tuvix snorted.
"Yeah. Odd. That's my life all over."
Janeway definitely had her doubts about Neelix's claim. Even though the Doctor had ruled out true insanity, some things did not add up at all. Like 'Tuvix's' speech patterns. Unwanted death might make one angry, but even allowing for Neelix's influence, this being spoke far too colloquially to suit her.
"Captain---this is unbelievable! I am
encountering-----AAAAAAAAAHHHH!!!"Both Tuvok and Neelix fell down, writhing in seeming agony.
"Computer--Reactivate EMH! Janeway Hector Five Aster."
"Please state the nature of the medical emergency."
The Doctor had both men up and around. Neelix looked genuinely confused.
"Captain? Doctor? Mister Vulcan?"
Tuvok opened his eyes.
"I was largely successful, Captain. Mister Neelix--what do you last recall?"
"Er--well, I asked Kes to a private dinner, and she said no. I felt--very angry--and I went to bed. It feels like I've been asleep forever."
"Literally inaccurate, but figuratively understandable. Mister Neelix, you were under the influence of our former conjoined self."
"Tuvix? But how is that possible, if he was us together?"
Janeway nodded.
"That's what I'd like to know. Tuvok, you all but declared Tuvix's real presence a complete impossibility."
"My error, Captain, lay in not considering every possibility, no matter how remote. In fact, our nemesis was Tuvix. He continued to exist in a sort of bubble state. My own disciplines expelled that bubble some time ago, without my even realizing it. In Mister Neelix's case, he lacked those techniques, and the residue of our briefly conjoined katras became stuck, if you will, in his psychic windpipe. But it has now been cleared."
Neelix nodded.
"Right towards the end, there--I saw some images. Is Kes all right?"
Janeway smiled, glad to have the Talaxian back to his old self.
"She's fine. We hid her for a time in Penny Robinson's guest quarters, after the explosions."
Tuvok shook his head.
"Captain--Kes was in Will Robinson's guest quarters. Not that he offered complaint."
Kathryn's face drained of color.
"Oh, John and Maureen are going to kill me."
The Doctor shrugged."Why? I'm certain Will was a perfect gentleman, within reason for a 15-year old boy."
Neelix answered.
"Doctor--Kes doesn't believe in private modesty. In her own quarters,
she walks around bare---everything."The Doctor took this in.
"Well, at least that should keep Will's mind off of kissing his sister.....Did I say that or think that?"
Janeway now felt faint. But, she was glad that she hadn't told the Doctor about Kes's future. He was, it seemed, a big wide fat holographic blabbermouth.
Tuvok got up.
"Captain, I will escort Mister Neelix back to his quarters, and fill him in on what has happened in his absence."
The EMH motioned.
"Very good idea. Then, you both get some rest--preferably not in Kes's
quarters---or Penny Robinson's."They left, and Janeway sat down, thiking about the troubled guest siblings.
"Doctor, how far have they gone together?"
Gulping, the suddenly loose-lipped EMH gave forth.
"No further. Captain, they're good children. They recognize the dangers in such behavior. They have a strong moral base. They'll get past this."
"IF they remain here, where there's lots of prospects. Funny how so few have paired off. But if the Doctors Robinson decide to leave? What choice will those two have, when the loneliness really hits home?"
A question for which The EMH's vast files contained no answer at all.
Inside Neelix's quarters, Tuvok simply stared at himself in the mirror. He now sported a grin a mile wide.
"Oh, this is perfect. And my thoughts- -they're cleared of pain and anguish. Its like a miracle."
Neelix was frowning, almost snarling.
"You want to keep that miracle? Then stick to the plan, and act like Tuvok would. Janeway must suspect nothing. Remember--she left all of us to die. That can never be forgotten."
"I suppose. Its just so hard to remember. I didn't even realize I'd been left behind. Why can't I remember?"
Neelix grabbed Tuvok, and shoved him against the wall.
"YOU don't have to remember a damned thing! Tuvok betrayed you, just like he betrayed us all when this started. Just like Chakotay betrayed me. Did he or did he not say that he would show you a path away from pain?"
"Yes, but...."
"But nothing! You died...in pain. As did I. As did we all. Now, the Captain who decided on damned Starfleet regs above our lives and the crew that fell to mush around her will die...in pain."
Tuvok pushed back.
"I'm stronger than you. Don't touch me again."
Neelix nodded.
"If we have an understanding, then I don't need to."
Tuvok left, his eyes a bit more dilated than usual. Neelix pulled up a star-map.
"That moron. She's taking us right into Borg space. You haven't changed, Captain. But you will. Oh--how you will change. Change--is good."
He then opened a drawer, and pulled out a chart with some odd symbols on it.
"I Speak To The True Gods, The Dwellers Contained, Who Will Be Released. The Ones Who Showed The Knowers How To Live Past Living. The Release Will Come. The Book Will Be Read. You Will Show Me The Way, And This Voyager Will Set The Temple Of Your Enemies To Burn. Then Shall The Universe Be Cleansed By Fire! I Speak Your Many Names---Filaag, Mofsto, Etaragan, Zarathos, Gidrah, Adimi- --PAGH WRAITHS!!"
He looked out his window, and smiled.
On the Bridge, Harry Kim stared at odd readings.
"Its like a wormhole opened, and just closed again. But it was nowhere we wanted to go, anyway."
Samantha Wildman, filling in for a flu-ridden crewman, shook her head.
"Where did it lead?"
Harry re-checked his findings.
"Hard to tell. Likely somewhere in The Gamma Quadrant."
---------------------------------------------------------
Tom began to explain.
"In the Robinsons' native universe, a show premiered on September 8, 1966. It was called Star Trek, and it lasted five years. Now, three of those years jibe identically with the most noted missions undertaken by the crew of The original USS Enterprise under the command of James T. Kirk."
Chakotay was floored by this concept, but kept up with it, using what his family had taught him about reality's basic unreliability.
"What about the other two years?"
Tom punched up some of what he had collated.
"Very uneven. Now, these jibe with some of their lesser-known missions, like the Chaeron cannibal funeral rite incident, and Serenidad. But---do you recognize this face?"
A dark-haired young boy-man appeared onscreen.
"Can't say that I do, Tom."
"His name is Craig Hundley. But transfer him to our universe, add about a century, and endless cadets worried about their xenobiology grade."
Chakotay gulped.
"That boy is Professor Kirk? You could have fooled me."
"It gets better. The TV Network running the show decided it needed more interest for young people. So Kirk's nephew Peter came on board to live. Within that fourth season, he even got a position on the Bridge. And this show was supposed to be serious science fiction."
"You have that right. Nothing ruins a serious narrative like a cute kid whose smarter than the main characters."
Tom chuckled.
"It got so bad with the fans, that they killed him off at the end of that same fourth season. But now, the fans turned around again--and demanded him back! So at the actors' suggestion, the dead one was a duplicate--and when the kid was brought back, he was just a kid. Helped out--but no ship-saving. People loved it, except for Hundley, who was typecast."
"So that's all of Kirk's career they covered?"
"Noper. In 1976, a show began called Phase Two. Ran for ten years. Began with the V'gr N'sa incident, ended with the Treaty Of Khitomer. Of course, after twenty years, the actor William Shatner was tired of the role. So the writers 'came up with' The B-Nexus-Harriman disaster. Bummed a lot of viewers out. Then came 1988. And The Next Generation."
Chakotay sighed, and nodded. No point backing out now.
"Which involved?"
"Well, I give them credit. With all the thousands of ships in the fleet, they chose The Enterprise-D. I mean, Picard defined that era, right?"
"Absolutely. Ro Laren was a part of my crew, before The Caretaker. But she overslept that morning, and Seska took her place. Talk about fate? That is fate accomplice, accessory, and convicted."
When it came to Seska Marlis, Paris knew better than to pursue the subject.
"Yeah, well, this series ends with Veridian Three--which I only read about the day Captain Janeway came to see me."
Chakotay got up, and rubbed his head.
"You were right to call me, Tom. All that is quite..."
"Commander, there are two more series."
Chakotay sat back down.
"How did I know you were going to say that?"
"I know. The first one is called Deep Space Nine. Bajor, and all that situation, after the Cardies pulled out. The second---well, understand, these two were deleted, so all I have are scraps and a description from the critical journal of that era, 'TV Guide'. Ready?"
"Paris, don't push me."
Tom shrugged.
"I'm not. But this one is going to push you, believe me."
"Sorry. But as often as I deal with the metaphysical, that's how hard it hits me when I'm not expecting it."
"Just be ready, Chakotay. Cause I wasn't."
Sensing that Paris was deadly serious, Chakotay centered himself.
"Do it."
"And I quote: 'This new Star Trek series seizes upon The Maquis storyline running in both The Next Generation And Deep Space Nine. A Federation Ship is sent out to pursue a Maquis ship in The Wild Badlands...."
Chakotay interrupted. He was sarcastic in tone.
"How dramatic. We all know how rarely that happened."
Tom smiled, and continued, while Chakotay sipped some tomato juice.
"...where both ships are taken to The Delta Quadrant by an entity called The Caretaker."
In a savage instant, the front port windows of The Jupiter 2 were stained with red.
Chakotay had spit out his tomato juice.
His mouth felt numb.
"K-K-K-K-ath-ath-athryn may just want to see---this."
In her ready room, that same individual received a report from The EMH.
"What have you found, Doctor?"
Expecting his usual banter, Captain Janeway only half-paid attention.
"Well, Doctor Zachary Smith has a second personality, Robot B-9 has a holographic matrix at his core, the Jupiter 2 is reverse-engineered from Alpha Centauran technology, Penny and Will are not yet sexually active, but nor are they the Robinsons' natural children, and while human, neither are they native to any Earth. And Naomi got her first tooth."
Janeway looked up.
"I'll have a quarter beamed in from the tooth fairy. Is that all, Doctor?"
The EMH gave her two minutes before the rest hit.
---------------------